Teen volunteers closing out summer duties at OMH

Teens get a look at opportunities within the healthcare profession as participants in Onslow Memorial Hospital's VolunTEEN program.

Jannette Pippin Daily News Staff jannette_pippin

Anthony Roman has volunteered three summers at Onslow Memorial Hospital and now heads into his senior year at Richlands High School with a pretty good idea of his plans after graduation.

“I want to be an oncologist,” he said as he worked at the wellness fair on one of his final days with the hospital VolunTEEN Program.

Roman had a general interest in the medical field when he joined the program but after three summers, and working this year with radiation oncology, he is pretty certain of what career field he hopes to pursue.

“When I started, I kind of knew I had an interest in the medical field but I was not sure what I wanted to do,” Roman said. “The experience I got kind of sealed the deal for me.”

Giving teens a glimpse at the different opportunities within the health care field is just what the hope to do, said VolunTEEN Program Coordinator Charlotte Rodriguez.

Rodriguez said there are a number of departments and jobs within the hospital that come together to make it work. While the doctors and nurses are who the public are most familiar with, she said there are many others at work each day to serve OMH patients and the community.

Nutritionists, dieticians, radiologists, lab workers, cafeteria staff, security, janitors, administrators, educators, supply staff, front desk. Those are just a few she mentions off the top of her head.

“This is a little city in and of itself,” Rodriguez said of the hospital. “There are a lot of jobs that make up a hospital and I want (the teens) to know about those jobs.”

Rodriguez, who is also a volunteer, said many of the teens have a general interest in the healthcare profession and she hopes to see them come back to work at Onslow Memorial Hospital one day.

“I want them to come back and work at my hospital; I do consider this my hospital,” Rodriguez said.

This marks the fifth year that Rodriguez has overseen to VolunTEEN Program and she loves it.

She does hope it inspires an interest in healthcare but she also wants the teens to see the value of volunteering, and that they can make a difference in others’ lives.

“If they don’t leave with anything else I hope they’ll know this is a place where people care and that they have made a difference is people’s lives,” Rodriguez said.

Rodney Dorn, 18, was part of the program for four years and now helps Rodriguez to coordinate the volunteers. He’s grown up in a family involved in the medical field and is getting ready to start the EMS program at Coastal Carolina Community College.

Dorn said being a part of the VolunTEEN program helped show him the ways they can help not only the doctors, nurses and hospital staff but the patients and their families as well.

“It really opened my eyes to how much we can do,” he said.

Brianna Lavoie, a rising junior at Dixon High School, is finishing her first summer with the program and has worked with patients and behind the scenes.

“Working on the fourth floor I got to interact with patients and the experience of what that is like. I also work in storage and got to see what it is like behind the scenes,” Lavoie said.

She is interested in being a medical examiner or forensic nurse and hopes to work next summer in the medical examiner’s office.

Kaylee St. Denis, a rising senior at Jacksonville High School, worked in the medical examiner’s office this summer. While she enjoyed the experience, it also helped her narrow down her career choices between being a nurse or pathologist.

Nursing, she said, fits better for her because she likes interacting with people.

“It has made me see what I’d like to do,” St. Denis said.

Aug. 19 is the last day for 69 teens who have participated in the program this summer.

Barbara Murray-Jones, materials distribution supervisor at OMH, said they enjoy having the teens with them each summer and they are a big help to the staff.

They can be seen each day stocking shelves, delivering orders, verifying counts and checking expiration dates on materials used throughout the hospital.

She said they much appreciate the work they do for the hospital and also get to know the teens while they are at OMH.

“We enjoy having them here both personally and professionally,” Murray-Jones said.

Coby Thigpen, a rising sophomore at East Duplin High School, said he has enjoyed his first year with the program and plans to return next summer.

“I do have an interest in the medical field and just wanted to come in and see how things run,” Thigpen said.

He’s not sure yet what field of healthcare he may pursue.

“I’m keeping my options open,” he said.

Rodriguez said that while the teens are working at the hospital she also tries to offer extra opportunities for them, such as their recent visit with Dr. Randy Blackburn, who talked to them about radiation oncology and also about the medical field in general.

They have also assisted OMH at community events such as National Night Out and the upcoming Shrimp Festival in Sneads Ferry.

The VolunTEEN program is open to teens age 15 to 18. Students are selected through an application and interview process, with requires parental consent and two teacher recommendations. The teen volunteers also go through an orientation that includes information on patient privacy policies, infection control and other hospital policies.

Interested teens can get applications online at onslow.org/volunteer-onslow-memorial or at the hospital front desk.

Reporter Jannette Pippin can be reached at jannette.pippin@jdnews.com or 910-382-2557.